I am a 56-year-old married mother of 2 sons with Arthur. I am also a retired Cook County Deputy Sheriff, having served for 30 years. I’m from the south side, low end of Chicago. I have been loving softball for as long as I can remember, starting in fifth grade when I played on the concrete at Douglas Elementary School. Growing up as the youngest of 12, Softball and sports ran in the family, as we had our own team. I attended Wendell Phillips to play basketball, where I ended up in the Illinois High School Association record book at number 2 for most steals in a season. I also played softball, and during my senior year, the team and I went to the city championship. During my 4 years of high school, I was a Principal’s Scholar, a college preparatory program. While being a teen mom, I attended Malcom X Community College and Chicago State University. My love for softball reignited back in 2008, when I had the opportunity to play for The Lady Sluggers in the Post Office League under the tutelage of Mr. Jessie Mesack, where I was the starting shortstop at the age of 41. Three years later, my team, Ice Dynasty, was formed. Continuing to play in the Post Office League, we were the runner-ups. In 2012, we took our talents to Harrison Park, where we went on to become champions in 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, and 2018. Playing shortstop or short center allowed me to be a key part of the team, thus getting coined the name of “Spark Plug”. Ice Dynasty was also the champion of the Washington Park Women’s League in 2016-2017. I’ve always been a fierce, passionate competitor who would leave it all on the field. Not only do I love to play 16-inch softball, but I also enjoy watching it. When I’m not playing, you can bet that I’m watching. Over the years, I have traveled out of town to watch games because I genuinely enjoy the atmosphere, and it can also be a valuable learning experience. Currently, I’m still loving every minute of 16-inch softball while still holding down my starting position at shortstop. Over my 15 years of playing softball, while maintaining a winning record, I’ve had some good games and some not-so-good games.
In closing, I have a few sayings that I like to go by, 1- “You can always learn something from someone” and 2- “If you look good, you play good” 3- “practice makes perfect-sense!”.